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There are lots of numbers associated with radio stations. Ratings, cost of ads, and all the lexicon that goes along with it. One of the best for an advertiser focuses on how many ads do I need to buy to be effective on your station. The more effective the station, the fewer ads need purchased to reach a majority of the stations audience.

Here is an example of effectiveness using the formula from website Avenue Right for the Billings market. The “effective” number is the number of ads you should buy in the given daypart to reach 1/2 the stations audience an average of three times. Like golf, a lower number is a better number.

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Take a moment today and reflect on how fleeting our time can be.Greg Chirrick passed away last evening. If you didn’t know Greg, you certainly passed his businesses every day. Greg was very involved in our community. He coached at his son’s baseball games and one of the local all star teams. I understand he may have been at a game last night. My prayers for the family as they try and make some sense of this. His co-workers and employees at Taco John’s of the area have lost a great leader and man.After writing the paragraph about Greg, it is hard to write the rest of the content today.

There are countless stories from Boston this week about people who were saved through the heroic efforts of others. Stories of how people suffered horrific injuries and are persevering. Those are just words or images on TV. Reality is what happens close to home. Reality hit with a vicious punch last night.

Mark May 23rd on your calendar right NOW! Its the KGHL 85th anniversary party at our studios at 600 First Avenue North. Last year we had a blast talking about the history of Billings oldest continuously operating commercial radio station. This year, we’re gonna party like its a few years past 1999. Formal invitations along with countless e-mails cluttering your inbox are coming soon.

Do you remember when producers of the movie, Nebraska, came to shoot a few scenes in Billings last fall? I was sitting in Don Luis Mexican Restaurant when the snow put an end to their shooting for the day. The cool part? I got a call from the show’s producers this week. Apparently, they want a little authentic Montana radio audio for use in the show. Their only call (at least they told me) was to Montana’s Mighty 790. When the movie comes out, you may hear KGHL blaring in the background of a scene or two. If we stay off the cutting room floor.

This week in Mighty Marketing, SMB owners struggling with social media, a Fool dumps on cable companies (not the product, the companies), ancient advertising wisdom, the greatest thing ever written, and a definitive reason why Duck Dynasty works and how you can benefit.

61% of Small Business Owners See NO RETURN in Social Mediaby Anita Campbell, Small Business TrendsThirty-nine percent (39%) of small business owners are seeing a return on investment from social media. That is according to a recent survey by Manta, released just last week.

Manta, an online small business community, surveyed more than 1,200 of its members to generate its quarterly Small Business Wellness Index, where these findings are from.

If 61% of small business owners aren’t seeing a return on their investment, why do so many agencies continue to pound the drum and promote social media and “counting the likes?”

Threats to Cable Getting More Real By The Day

The KGHL listener research study of more than 1700 people showed use of cable by our listeners was very low–only 21% were Optimum subscribers. Now comes a presentation by the Motley Fool that really shows the challenges for cable. The following showed up in my inbox this week.

I’ve never seen a business fail due to “reaching the wrong people.” So why does every business owner instinctively believe that “reaching the right people” is the key to successful advertising?

Who, exactly, do you not want to know about you? Who isn’t qualified to repeat the good things they’ve heard about you? And when is the best time to advertise?

Solomon wrote about these things in the 11th chapter of Ecclesiastes:

“If you wait for perfect weather, you will never plant your seeds. If you are afraid that every cloud will bring rain, you will never harvest your crops… So begin planting early in the morning, and don’t stop working until evening. You don’t know what might make you rich. Maybe everything you do will be successful.”

Advertising is a seed that grows in the soil of the customer’s heart. If you will allow this metaphor, it would appear that Solomon advises, “Don’t overthink it. Just tell your story every day in every circumstance. You never know who might be listening.”

I know it’s counterintuitive, but if you look at all the offers from all the sellers of mass media and then accept the offer that allows you to reach the largest number of people each week, 52 weeks a year, for the fewest dollars per week, it’s hard to make a mistake.

An impressive, memorable message is what matters most. How you deliver that message – and who hears it – is far less important than you have been led to believe.

It is your choice of message that targets the customer, not your choice of media.

Jase and Missy Robertson are coming to Metra Park in a fund raiser for the Big Sky Youth Education Foundation May 4. I hope you have your tickets or table. There are a lot of reasons why this show works.

With their long, bushy beards, the camouflage-wearing, self-described “rednecks” of “Duck Dynasty” look more like a ZZ Top tribute band than reality-TV darlings. But they’re generating the kind of ratings and social media chatter that blow away many of their prime-time counterparts.

“Duck Dynasty” is a warm and amusing saga about the Robertson family of Louisiana. It shattered A&E viewing records when it attracted 8.6 million viewers to its Season 3 opener a few weeks ago. Meanwhile, the show’s Facebook page has more than 4.2 million fans.

How did this happen? Why has a seemingly simple show about humble Southern folks who built their fortune on handmade duck calls resonated with so many people? Let us count the ways:

Amid the nation’s economic downturn, “Duck Dynasty” has touched a nerve with viewers who have become turned off by the gaudy, materialistic shenanigans of the “Real Housewives,” the Kardashians, et al.

3. It transcends its genre

On one hand, “Duck Dynasty” is riding the popular wave of so-called Southern-fried “redneck” shows that includes fare such as “Here Comes Honey Boo Boo,” “Swamp Pawn” and “Buckwild.” Then again, it really belongs in a category all its own.

4. Endearing characters

“Duck Dynasty” episodes generally have a sitcom structure and, like the best scripted sitcoms, it contains a collection of interesting, diverse personalities.

5. G-rated laughs

Susan Farrell, a fan who lives in Walnut Creek, calls “Duck Dynasty” a “modern-day ‘Brady Bunch.’ ” She appreciates the show largely because it’s one that she and her husband and three kids — ages 10 through 15 — can all enjoy.

Explain Boston to your kids or your grandkids. There are some things that just don’t make sense. I was so proud of Ed McIntosh who was on the air at KGHL Monday afternoon. Ed worked hard to get phone calls to Billings residents (like James Berve and Rocky coach Alan King) who ran in the marathon. He didn’t just write a story–he got them on the air to find out what happened and were they OK. KGHL was online yes, but on air is where Ed and KGHL really shined. I am proud to be at a place that does local radio and does it right.

How strongly do your employees believe in what they are selling?

It was a question that immediately set my mind to racing this morning when I heard it. You’ve been around people who didn’t believe. You know, the kind of employee who mumbles when you ask a question. Or doesn’t follow up your request with a coherent answer. It’s a great question to ask yourself in your business this morning.

Mark May 23rd on your calendar right NOW! Its the KGHL 85th anniversary party at our studios at 600 First Avenue North. Last year we had a blast talking about the history of Billings oldest continuously operating commercial radio station. This year, we’re gonna party like its a few years past 1999. You’ll get an invitation for the event soon.

KGHL just completed the biggest audience research project I’ve ever been part of launching. Over 1700 KGHL listeners had a chance to tell us what they thought, what they do, and what they like and don’t like about the Mighty 790. The results were stunning. I think it will change the way you look at KGHL.

This week in Mighty Marketing, the only way social media works, an infographic on social media use, the scariest part of being a print advertiser today, Google dumps another product, and the top line data on our innovative market study.

I hope you find this week’s issue useful. Each week, I skim and review a ton of marketing ideas and blogs so you don’t have to spend your time. Thanks for reading.

Ray Massie, General Manager KGHL

Attention, Interest, Desire, Actionby USA TodayFinally, an example of how social media can actually grab attention.Sophomoric? Silly? Or a smart strategic move?

The jury is out on a new Kmart ad that uses sleight of mouth to promote a free shipping service. The online video shows customers who exclaim that they are going to “ship their pants” through a Kmart delivery program — but it sounds as if they are using a vulgar word that sounds very much like ship.

Some social media users deemed the commercial, created by ad agency Draftfcb Chicago, “gross” and “vulgar,” while many gave kudos to Kmart for having an edgy sense of humor.

But even with the negative comments, Kmart got what it wanted: Millions of potential shoppers now know that it offers free shipping for members of its “Shop Your Way” program when the product they want isn’t in the store.

News networks such as CNN’s HLN reported on the controversial ad, while the official YouTube video from Kmart had nearly 10 million views as of late Tuesday afternoon.

OK, its not the first time social media stuff made an impact. The biggest single problem with social media is its general lack of ability to get Attention. Using digital products like Adwords, Facebook, etc, are great once you have grabbed a consumers attention.

All of us wish we could do viral work like this. Remember, the God Made A Farmer video from Ram Trucks that spawned a 100 or more mimics online. Note the part traditional media played in bringing the controversy to the masses.

Here it is: In 2012, newspapers lost $16 in print ads for every $1 earned in digital ads. And it’s getting worse, according to a new report by Pew. In 2011, the ratio was just 10-to-1.

The digital ad revolution, always “just around the corner”, remains tantalizingly out of reach for most newspapers, which explains why some stalwarts like the New York Times and Wall Street Journal have moved to subscription models for their websites to bolster digital ad growth. Just today, the Washington Post announced a paywall.

Here’s the ten year picture of print vs. digital ads for newspapers:

Since 2003, print ads have fallen from $45 billion to $19 billion. Online ads have only grown from $1.2 to $3.3 billion. Stop and think about that gap. The total ten-year increase in digital advertising isn’t even enough to overcome the average single-year decline in print ads since 2003. Ugh.

Google Shuts Down Its Google Affiliate NetworkGoogle constantly is tinker with and making changes in its company. If you were a user of the RSS feed reader, Google Reader, the company announced its shut down earlier in the month. Additionally, Google announced this week it will shut down the Google Affiliate Network. Google pledged to continue to support customers as the network winds down “over the next few months.”The closing was announced by J.J. Hirschle, head of Google Affiliate Network, on its official blog. Hirschle said the program originally was created to help advertisers drive conversions (sales) via cost-per-action advertising. He said Google re-evaluated the service in light of recent developments in the marketplace.“We’re constantly evaluating our products to ensure that we’re focused on the services that will have the biggest impact for our advertisers and publishers,” Hirschle wrote. “To that end, we’ve made the difficult decision to retire Google Affiliate Network and focus on other products that are driving great results for clients.”

The Biggest Radio Research Project Ever Done in Billings

Unlike virtually every single “research” project ever done for the Billings market, KGHL wanted to focus on the listeners and what they do and use. You can find agencies and reps who will quote “the numbers” without much understanding what those numbers mean. I have never seen a ‘number'” buy anything.

This was a consumer study of more than 1700 members of the KGHL audience. The compares with the current market rating service which surveys 1200 PER YEAR. If you have ever put credibility in ratings, the KGHL study group was nearly 50% higher and responded in a four day time span. Its a real accurate picture of the audience who listens to KGHL.

Highlights from the results:

32% of the KGHL listener group works in Agriculture. That’s a huge number and probably not found anywhere else unless you look at the MATE Show for example. The second highest work group was construction.

50% of KGHL’s audience is 45-64. That is right on par with the Billings market.

Only 21% of KGHL’s audience uses Optimum cable. You certainly can’t reach the KGHL person by using cable TV advertising. Print isn’t any higher. 31% of the KGHL group subscribes to the Gazette.

Couple of more interesting items from the study, Twitter use is non existent (2%). Facebook use is at (47%). Men listen to KGHL much more than women (58/42).

There’s more to the study to share. The idea here was to have a real complete view of our audience so we can do a better job of helping you with your business. KGHL is not the product for every business. But we know better than anyone who we reach, what they think, and the products they need from you.

The Masters golf tournament begins today in Georgia. Unless you play golf, the language in the game can be a bit foreign.

Years ago, I visited Puerto Vallarta for vacation. Even got to play a golf course that was one of the World Championship Golf tournament courses–the ones Tiger Woods used to own. The course was so tough, especially for a hacker like me, I was required to have a local as a caddy. Fortunately, I know a decent amount of Spanish. Even more fortunate, my caddy’s English was better. It didn’t help my golf game. (Losing 18 balls in a round is a bad round of golf no matter what the language.)

Maybe it was not having my regular clubs.

Not!

The story came to mind as I was thinking about the needs of one of my clients. He clearly needs more ag customers for his business. (He sells a product exclusively aimed at farms and fields.) KGHL has the ag audience with more farm and ranch programming and more farmers and ranchers listening than any other media outlet in Montana.

Seems like this should be an easy deal doesn’t it?

Yet, unless we are speaking the same language, we have no chance of striking a deal. Even a deal that benefits both sides is completely out of reach.

I don’t think of what I do as selling. KGHL has a highly targeted audience of farm and ranch familes along with the mature lifestyle group. Consider AARP The Magazine is the most read magazine of any type in the Billings market area, we have an audience that will buy your products.

Success is when we direct the traffic KGHL has built and direct them to your product that solves their problem.

Just like Staples Easy Button.

KGHL is here with solutions for you. The care and growth of your business really does matter to us.

This week’s Mighty Marketing will be a bit different. Your feedback indicated you’d like shorter articles with links you could use if the story interested you. Let me know what you think about the new style.

Reading time 5:49This rain could not have come at a better time. KGHL Meteorologist Ed McIntosh says we are actually ahead of the averages and last year too. That’s good news for agriculture. KGHL National Ag Day programming Tuesday did a pretty good job describing how much of the Montana economy comes from ag. From sugar in the cookies, flour in your bread, to the meat on the table, a farmer or rancher made that happen. More than ONE BILLION dollars of ag products come from the KGHL coverage area in Montana and Wyoming.

Salesperson’s breakfast is tomorrow, NCAA playoffs with the Griz tonight, and Palm Sunday makes this weekend really busy. It’s hard for Bobcats to root for Griz, but I’ll make an exception tonight. Just to make it fun, predict the total points of tonight’s game and I’ll buy you a steak dinner for the effort. Send your guess before tip off tonight. My guess is 127. Closest guess wins.

This week, Coke’s Facebook results, Lonnie at the Northern Grand Opening, Banner Blindness (applies to billboards too), the ONLY way your business can survive, KGHL’s new Android streaming app, some last minute shopping, Lonnie’s Facebook page, and an infographic on meeting lunacy

I hope you find this week’s issue useful. Each week, I skim and review a ton of marketing ideas and blogs so you don’t have to spend your time. Thanks for reading.

Ray Massie, General Manager KGHL

Bernie’s Diner Opens with Lonnie BellThe Northern Hotel is open! Lonnie Bell and Ed McIntosh helped open Bernie’s Diner Sunday morning with a live broadcast. The diner opened at 6am for the very first time. Jessica Oe and her staff at Bernie’s had a great first day from what I could tell. What a HUGE cup of coffee they served!

Coca-Cola Study: Online Buzz Has NO Effect on Sales

A Coca-Cola Co. study finds online buzz has no measurable impact on short-term sales, said a company executive in a presentation at the Advertising Research Foundation’s Re:think 2013 conference in New York today.

It’s a stunning admission for a company who’s flagship brand has 61.5 million fans, more than any other brand on Facebook. But Eric Schmidt, senior manager-marketing strategy and insights at Coca-Cola, isn’t giving up on buzz just yet. And he cautioned against reading too much into the research, noting that it covers only buzz, not sharing, video views or other aspects of social media.

But when Coca-Cola put buzz sentiment data into the same analytical framework it uses to evaluate other digital media, Mr. Schmidt said, “We didn’t see any statistically significant relationship between our buzz and our short-term sales.”

Coke research was far more favorable for digital display advertising, which it found on average to be 90% as effective as TV at generating sales on a per-impression basis, Mr. Schmidt said. Radio was below TV but above search. Search itself was 50% as effective as TV – about the same as out-of-home.

“Digital ROI has to be a financial measure that allows us a consistent measurement of business performance over time,” he said, and also lets marketers make informed tradeoffs between media.

Uh-Oh! I have only 120 shopping days until irrelevancy! So far this year, I bought a new car for myself and a used car for my son. Still remaining on the list: SUV for my wife, a few suits for me (luckily someone has a buy one get 3 or 4 free deal), and new TVs for the den and our bedroom. Why the shopping spree you ask? In just 120 days I turn 55, and immediately become irrelevant to many advertisers much more intelligent than me. Oh sure, they love me now that I’m within that magical 25 – 54 age demographic. But now that I’m about to turn 55, they could care less about me. 120 days to use the internet (I’m going to miss it), and search for those advertisers who were wooing me during those important years when I was 25-34 and didn’t have two nickels to rub together. Hope their advertising investments paid off and they’re still in business. The good news for all of these advertisers who will no longer want my business is that they won’t waste any of their marketing dollars on me. You see, in just 120 days I will achieve the trifecta of advertiser no-no’s: 55+, African American, and often listen to “controversial” talk show programming!

Imagine that, the one year when I anticipate the highest earning potential of my life, and the only companies who want my business sell V***gra, death insurance, and “Active Adult” home communities. Of course, I won’t be able to furnish the house because the furniture companies stopped advertising to me after I was 49.

Alas… the good news is that all of the discretionary income I anticipate amassing from advertisers who no longer want my business will be well-spent. You see, my son will be firmly entrenched in the 18 – 34 demographic for some time now. Lord knows he can’t afford any of the retailers who are fighting so desperately for his business. Relevancy once again! I hope they don’t realize some old black guy who listens to AM radio is funding his spending. They may not let him buy either!

(On a serious note: advertisers, please realize that age demographics don’t buy goods and services, people do. Find out who really does buy your products and learn how to speak to them. Consumer behavior usually crosses, age, racial, and political lines. )

Among their predictions was that Facebook paid advertising will continue to be “a flop” with most local service businesses. They also said national brands with multiple locations will

transfer more of their marketing dollars to local marketing and away from branding.

There are two key items to pay attention to in these predictions. The first is that the promise of new media, while seductive will continue to disappoint.

The second is that big companies – your competitors – will be investing more money in advertising and marketing.

That means if you don’t want to be eaten by all the “wolves at your door,” you need to beef up your special bond with your customers, clients, or patients NOW.

The NEW 24 (% Growth That Is)

That’s the increase in streaming audience for KGHL after release of the new 790 KGHL Now app in the Google Play store. The app is free and works on Android phones only right now. The Apple version of the player will come soon. Click the link to get the app for yourself.

If you didn’t know, all advertisers on KGHL get streaming included with their contracts.

After being asked to recall the last display ad they saw, only 14% could name the company, the brand or the product, suggesting that brands are wasting millions of dollars in ads that consumers don’t remember.

The Infolinks study analyzing banner blindness reveals that 60% couldn’t recall the last display ad they saw. The survey analyzes responses from U.S.-based consumers in December from all genders, ages, income and education levels.

Relevance remains a key challenge, and 3.65% of respondents who remembered the last ad they viewed did not remember the context. About 80% felt the last ad they saw was not relevant to them. Only 2.8% of respondents said they thought the ads they saw met their needs to either answer a question or provide more information.

There are similarities between the way the U.S. Transportation Security Administration, airport security screeners, glaze over liquid-filled bottles in carry-on luggage and the banner ads that consumers searching for information never see. Infolinks CEO Dave Zinman believes improving the 0.1% click-through rates on banner ads requires choosing nontraditional and memorable ad locations to increase the recall by consumers typically bombarded with messages.

Zinman’s advice is to avoid delivering ads without first identifying user intent, and serve fewer ads to reduce clutter on pages — suggesting that brands are willing to pay more for premium, uncluttered experiences.

First Impressions Can Be WAY Off the Mark

Lonnie Bell is a legend in Billings. A list of career firsts would take all of this e-mail. Your first impression might be Lonnie’s audience would be older. You would be wrong. Take a look at the graph from Lonnie’s Facebook page.

Lonnie’s audience is even younger than the market average. Even more astounding are these results with the lack of promotion for Lonnie’s page. You won’t hear Lonnie hyping “like me on Facebook”.

Advance Promotion WorksI loved this quote from an e-mail sent to me by Brian Engle of Pioneer Meats of Big Timber. Pioneer does a tremendous job of supporting local FFA and youth charities in addition to making a great brat. I’ve always talked about a great advantage of using radio is the ability to drive customers to your special event. Brian advertises his appearances at events like the Celtic Festival on KGHL.“We had a good day selling stuff. We even had people refer to the radio ad. Imagine that.”

Don’t Suck At Meetings

How many meetings do you have at your work? The real cost of meetings is the huge time suck they can become. Here’s an infographic from Small Business Trends.com laying out the cost of these long meetings.